Kiss of Midnight_ A Midnight Breed Novel - Lara Adrian [800]
And some long while later, after she was finally sated and strong, he settled back on the bed with her and wrapped her in his protective embrace, giving her a hundred solemn promises that he was very eager to keep, and loving her with all the reverence and worship of a blood-bonded male who had stared hell in the face and now understood that he was holding heaven in his arms.
EPILOGUE
NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
ONE WEEK LATER
Reichen stood alone at the moonlit shore of Narragansett Bay, deep in a private meditation that had become his nightly ritual after he and Claire had left Boston. Behind him, the sounds of her soft piano music drifted down from the house. He let the soothing notes wash over him as he focused all of his mental energy on the bright orb of fire that he held suspended in the foot of space between his palms.
The ball spun faster as he slowly brought his hands into a closer span. The light grew hotter, turning from the orange glow of flame to an intense whitish blue. And still Reichen squeezed it tighter, compressing the fire’s power into a smaller and smaller area that was completely under his control.
The pyrokinesis that had once coursed through his entire body like a savage brush fire was slowly coming to heel. Finally bending to his will, obeying his command.
The exercise was exhausting, but each time he worked the fire he got better at it. Tonight he had held it for ten minutes straight—twice as long as he had only the night before. He was determined to shape his ability into a true talent, and he had Claire to thank for getting him this far.
She was his grounding strength. Her blood kept him steady, and her love kept him whole. He was finally coming to accept himself as he was—all that he was, including this part of him, which he’d tried for so long to deny. He’d gone three decades living a shallow existence, closing himself off from true emotion for fear that it would make him weak. Now he felt everything in exponentially greater measure. With Claire at his side, he was finally coming to embrace all that it meant to truly be alive.
Distantly, as he honed the orb of fire into a smaller, brighter sphere, he registered that the music from inside the house had stopped. It took all of his focus to keep the ball spinning between his palms. So much so that he didn’t hear anyone approaching until a deep male voice muttered a vivid curse behind him.
“It’s all right, Tegan,” Claire said, as Reichen slowly pivoted to face them. Her smile was amused, and not a little proud as she met her mate’s gaze. “You’re getting better at this. Last time you did it, the orb only got as small as an orange.”
Reichen quirked a brow at her as he crushed his hands together and extinguished the flames completely. His body was tired from the exertion it took to manage his talent, but his heart soared to see Claire’s confidence in him. And he was glad to see his friend from Boston, too.
“Tegan,” he said, extending his hand to the warrior in greeting.
The Gen One gave him a cautious nod as he clasped the hand that had just been lit with preternatural heat. “Impressive,” he said, grinning now. “Someone’s obviously been eating his Wheaties.”
Reichen laughed. “I have something far better than that, my friend.”
Claire came over and wrapped her arm around him, nestling into his side. He would never tire of feeling her pressed close to him, and the past week they’d spent together in Newport had been the best rehabilitation he could have asked for. He was content beyond his wildest imaginings, but seeing Tegan now, he had to admit a growing itch to get back into the thick of the action with his friends in the Order.
“Have there been any further leads on Dragos since we spoke a couple of days ago?” he asked, figuring the warrior hadn’t come all the way down to Rhode Island just on a house call.
“We’re following up on a few things, but